greeknasty

15's are LED fogs

greeknasty

Really the only difference from 10 years ago is HID reflectors vs projectors. Ballasts..bulbs..there's not much change

TechNut

I would also guess the bulb's color temperature has also been changed at some point. As I mentioned, the 2013 HIDs are noticeably whiter than the 2004. I would have thought that change would have occurred with the new generation, so I would speculate the 10 and 15 HIDs are the same. Just a guess on my part.

chiefnomad

I have heated and ventilated seats as well as rain sensing wipers which means I should have the comfort package in its entirety. From far away they look more white than yellow and the closer you are, they look just a tad more yellow.

They don't level up and down when the car starts up, and my previous car (BMW X3) did that. I find it strange that it's obviously equipped with the Comfort Package yet possibly doesn't have HIDs at the same time. Maybe that's possible with how Lexus packages its vehicles.

chiefnomad

No specific paperwork but that's what was advertised when I purchased it. How can I check? Perhaps compare it to a few others at the dealership?

BertL

I just pulled my 2013 RX marketing brochure off my shelf and verified that within the Comfort Pkg it has "Heated and ventilated front seats * High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlamps with dynamic auto-leveling * Rain-sensing intermittent windshield wipers with mist cycle". The only possible override to that I can see is if you had a RXh AWD with the Luxury Pkg, then you'd have the (even better IMHO) LED headlamps like I have on mine.

I can't tell from your post if you bought this new-to-you RX from a dealer or 3rd party, so assuming some previous owner didn't swap out or do something with your headlights, you could always ask your SA next time you're in for service about why your headlights don't seem to be doing the initial adjustment at start-up for the self-leveling capability. There is likely some way to physically tell if you have the HIDs or not as well, but since I have LEDs, can't offer any suggestions what to look for. The other thing is your SA can probably look up the installed features on your RX -- I seem to remember, but am not solid on that point as it's been a long time since I looked at the VIN info for my RX on TIS, that their view is more at the component level than the option packages like sales works with and you find on a sticker. Net is, if it really is a concern -- go to your dealer service dept and ask them to pull up what their system says your RX has installed. That's at least what I'd do in your situation. Good luck.

justin1203

Post a picture

neelnaik

chiefnomad, post a picture of the headlight's output on a wall, with the car a couple feet away. The difference between HID projectors and halogen projectors is that the beam pattern is different. HID projectors produce a wide, even, beam pattern. Halogen projectors, on the other hand, have a large hot spot in front of the vehicle, with the sides of the beam pattern being noticeably darker.

For an idea of what HID projector beam patterns look like, see my post (post #10) of this thread. BTW, I know the link is to the 2nd gen RX forum (RX330)
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...-low-beam.html

Another example of an HID beam pattern (SC430), better pic.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sc-...rightness.html

@greeknasty,
The 04-09 RX330/350 with HIDs actually came with projectors as well. The 1st gen RX300 had HIDs in reflector housings.

The projector is actually different between the 2nd gen and 3rd gen RX as well. The 2nd gen had a step cutoff. I believe the 3rd gen does not. I also believe that the lens is different as well, as the 3rd gen beam pattern seems to be wider than the 2nd gen, but I could be wrong on that.

thesemes

the answer is stamped on the headlamp lens enclosure. If HID, it'll have the bulb type/number imprinted on the lens. look very closely.